


Feathers

by BlazingEspeon33



Series: Ocean Feathers [1]
Category: Moana (2016)
Genre: AU, Angst, Banter, Fluff, Gen, Maui is a baby hawk lmao, Mild Hurt/Comfort, Polynesian Mythology - Freeform, also i may bend the rules of polynesian mythology a little bit, and other things, oops i said too much, please dont get mad at me, someone's gonna get hurt real bad later on, turn down the bants
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-02-09
Updated: 2017-02-17
Packaged: 2018-09-23 02:12:45
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 15
Words: 17,559
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9636311
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BlazingEspeon33/pseuds/BlazingEspeon33
Summary: Moana wakes up one day to find Maui; but he's been cursed and now he's a baby hawk. The both of them have to lift the curse, and possibly save the world yet again.





	1. Temper

**Author's Note:**

> Hey there ^^  
> This is my first work in AO3, so sorry if I make a few mistakes while publishing the chapters. The idea first came to me as I was drawing a picture of Moana riding Maui in hawk form. I just thought "what if Maui was a baby hawk" and the idea escalated from there.  
> Anyway, I hope you all enjoy this little story.  
> Feedback is greatly appreciated, have a nice day ^_^

Moana forced her way through the fale entrance, her shoulders tense. She had a feeling what this talk was about.  
Her father, Tui, sat in one corner of the fale, with Sina, his wife and Moana’s mother.

“Moana.”

“Father. Mother.”

Moana sat down on the mat opposite her parents, her posture stiff and her face carefully vague of any emotion.  
“So what’s all of this about?”asked Moana, fiddling with her skirt a little bit.  
“Moana,” Tui began, his voice gentle. “You are now 19 years old. As future Chief of Motunui, you must find a partner to help you with running the village and continue the Waialiki line.”  
For a bit, Moana had this blank look on her face, like her brain had shut down completely. Her jaw had succumbed to gravity, and she was sure it would fall off at any second. On one hand, her suspicions were correct; this talk was about marriage. On the other hand, it still came off as quite the shock, for Tui to address it matter-of-factly.  
“I’m sorry,” began Moana carefully, her brain just barely processing what her father had said. “But I believe I have the right to choose who and when I will marry.”

Tui sighed. “Moana, you’ve been putting this off for 3 years already. It’s about time for you to settle down. I arranged for you to marry another ali’i from another island. Your marriage will secure a bond between the two villages.” Tui droned on, completely unaware of Moana’s gasp of shock.

“I will not,” she said, steel in her voice.

Tui stopped his rambling. “What?”

“I will not,” said Moana again, a bit louder this time, her tone cold and harsh and disbelieving.

Tui’s face hardened slightly. “Moana-“

“I WILL NOT!” she screamed this time, standing up and balling her fists. “I HAVE A RIGHT TO REFUSE, DON’T I? AND ON TOP OF THAT, I DON’T EVEN KNOW WHO THIS PERSON IS, LET ALONE LOVE HIM! HOW CAN THAT POSSIBLY WORK OUT? AS FOR THE MARRIAGE, I WILL MARRY WHEN I WANT TO, WITH WHO I WANT TO! IS THAT CLEAR?!”  
Moana’s face was red with anger, her expression contorted into a snarl. She was breathing heavily, her body trembling. Then she turned around and stalked out of the room.  
“This meeting is over,” she hissed coldly before rushing out. After that ordeal, guilt settled down. Moana hadn’t meant to scream like that to her father, especially not in his own fale. She had to get away. Her feet moved of their accord, and she stumbled around until she found herself at the beach. She sighed heavily and sunk to her knees, letting the cold water reach out and lap around her feet.

“Ocean?” she asked tentatively. She needed someone to listen to her at the moment. On cue, a blob of water rose out of the sea, tilting its head to look at her in confusion.  
Moana gave a weak smile and extended her hand out, which the ocean responded by placing another shell into her palm. She accepted the gift. Then the ocean reached over and tussled her hair for a while, washing the curly brown locks. Moana giggled. She missed this. Her duties had prevented her from coming to the ocean, and it was rare to see the ocean actually reacting to her presence when she did come down to the beach.  
Then suddenly the water stopped, arced over her shoulder and shot a jet of water at something behind Moana. A male voice cursed loudly; a deep boisterous voice, a voice that Moana knew well. Tucking her wet hair behind on ear she swung around only to collapse in a fit of giggles.  
Maui stood behind her, his hair wet, his eyes half-lidded, his expression not the least bit amused and a blue fish flopping around in his hair. His large fishhook sat on the sand beside him. Glaring at her, he plucked the poor fish out of his hair and flung it into the ocean.  
Moana stood up, recovering from the laughing fit.

“Seriously, the first thing that happens to me when I visit; get my hair wet and slimy with all that fish goop. Not cool,” muttered the demigod, glaring at the blob of water. The ocean responded by jetting him back with another blast of water, and Moana promptly fell back down with laughter again.  
Mini Maui joined in the laughter and added a point to Moana’s side in his scoreboard. Maui glared at him as he wrung the water out of his hair.

“Nice to see you too, Maui,” choked Moana, wiping her eyes and standing up.  
Maui sighed and opened his arms up for a hug, which the human responded to by flinging herself at him; literally. He staggered back for a third time that day and wrapped his massive arms around her.

“So how’re ya doing?” asked Maui after they broke the hug.

Moana scowled. “My parents are trying to get me to marry a stranger.”  
Maui’s jaw dropped in a similar manner to Moana’s. She sighed. “I know. That was my reaction too.”

“Okay, okay, okay, let me get this straight,” began Maui, after his brain had rebooted. “Your parents are arranging a marriage for you? With some barbarian from another village? Seriously???”

Moana couldn’t help but giggle at the way he phrased the sentence. “Yeah. Seriously.”

Maui brought his palm to his forehead in exasperation. “Wow. That sucks.”

Moana grabbed his hand, and he startled a little. “Let’s just swim for a while. I haven’t had this much free time to myself in ages.”

Maui nodded and turned into a duck, waddling his way into the water and shaking his tail happily as he bobbed up and down in the surf. Moana joined him, her dress flowing behind her in the water. She twirled and danced with the waves, like her grandmother had taught her.  
Maui watched her in amazement, swimming around in circles around her. A few manta rays joined her, twirling around her as well as she spun around and twirled her arms. After that, she bent down to stroke each and every one of the rays before they swam off, leaving Moana and Maui alone.

“That was quite impressive, for an annoying little child,” admitted the duck. Moana gave him a small smile.

“I’m not a kid anymore, Maui,” she said, stroking his fluffy little head. He quacked in protest, dipping his head under the water to escape her fingers. “I’m 19 years old.”

“Well time sure flows by,” sputtered Maui as he came back up for breath. “You still look the same though…except…” He found himself doing a double take at Moana’s appearance. She had changed slightly. Moana caught him staring and folded her arms self-consciously.

“You done checking me out?” she joked as Maui dipped his head under the water to avoid her gaze. His response was a stream of bubbles. Chuckling to herself, she sank to her knees in the water, shivering at the cold but eventually settling down. She paddled after Maui and they swam for a bit until the sun went down.  
“Well, I gotta go back now,” said Moana after drying off in the last rays of the sun. “Why not spend a night in my fale? I have a guest mat in case I have any visitors.”

Maui shrugged. “Why not.”

Grinning up at him, Moana tugged on his arm. “C’mon, let’s go.”


	2. What Happens At Night

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Maui's in deep shit

Maui watched Moana sleep. The blanket covering her slowly rose and fell as she breathed deeply. He quickly made his way out. Moana hadn't told anyone he was here, and he certainly didn't want anybody to know he was here. He had a job to do. He turned into an iguana and slithered down the path. Most of Motunui's people were already in their _fales,_ sleeping the night away.

 

Making his way to Motunui's highest peak, he turned into a hawk and flew the rest of the way up. He landed on the top, where a pile of stones sat. Above those stones stood a lone seashell, sparkling slightly in the starlight. The moon wasn't out tonight, and that meant one thing.

Night Marchers.

Maui allowed himself a few moments to admire the shell before a loud drumming noise could be heard.

Oh. Right. He had to make sure the villagers were safe.

 

Turning back into a hawk, he swooped down, the wind whistling in his ears and ruffling his feathers. He banked up to avoid a tree and headed swiftly for the village. His hawk eyes scanned the area for any villagers out in the open, where the poor person would be defenseless against the spirits, lest any of their ancestors were there among the Marchers.

He spotted a couple out in the open and made a little  _cree_ noise of frustration. He had to warn them. He swooped down again and turned back into a human. The villagers were more than surprised to see a hawk turn into a human in the blink of an eye;much less the demigod Maui himself.

"Okay, before you all bow down to me in respect or cheer, let me tell you, there are Night Marchers heading this way so unless you want to become ghosts haunting this land forever, you'd better get back to your  _fales_." Maui paused as the drumbeats got louder. "And fast."

The villagers nodded and ran, dragging their children with them. Once Maui had made sure there was no one else out and about in the open, he swiftly flew towards the sound of the marching. He knew they were heading where he needed to be. He spotted the ghostly warriors, chanting and beating their drums. In the procession, to his surprise, stood the goddess Hi'iaka, in the ranks of the fallen warriors.

She chanted along with them, displaying her warrior face as they marched on. Maui continued to follow them. 

When the sun's rays started appearing over the horizon, Maui watched as the warriors entered a burial ground and laid down in their tombs. Hi'iaka also disappeared, which was a good sign for Maui. He landed not far from the site and started hunting around the area.

 

Te Fiti sent him on this mission. He needed to find the eel.

A splash made him look up. Towering over him was a man-eel. He had the upper half of a man and the torso of an eel. Silver scales flashed in the light.

"Ah, so Te Fiti  _did_ send an insolent little demigod to get me,"mused the man, slithering close to Maui. The demigod held out his hook, flashing his warrior face. "There's no need for that," sniffed the man as he waved Maui off. "So tell me, what did the Mother Island have to do with me? And why send the one who stole her heart in the first place?"

Maui winced at the reminded of his past mistake. "She wanted me to get you so she could negotiate. You've been sending spirits to attack her island."

"Yes, yes," replied the man, unamused. "So what if I've been sending my spirits there to play for a while? They needed the fresh air anyway."

"Saveasi'uleo," Maui growled. "Te Fiti reported that your spirits' 'playing' have been damaging her plants and animals." He gestured to the blackened grass that stood under Elo's tail. "And she told me to either convince you to go there or get you there by force."

Saveasi'uleo gave a raspy laugh that sent chills down Maui's spine. "And you think you could ask me to go there? he laughed. "No, I'm perfectly fine where I am right now."

Maui got ready. "Then I shall have to force you." With a scary grimace, Maui stomped his feet and started doing a  _haka_ , challenging Elo to a fight. The eel-man glared at him.

"Fine then, I have no choice."

 

Chaos ensued.

Large rifts were torn in the ground, the grass blackened and charred from their fight. Maui dodged and weaved out of Saveasi'uleo's way, changing form to dodge easily. Elo snarled and flung spell after spell at the dodging demigod, destroying the land around him in the process. After a while, the both of them were tired. They stood there, glaring at each other.

Then Elo smirked and uttered a spell. The ground shook from under Maui. He gripped his hook and transformed into his hawk form to fly away. Saveasi'uleo smirked and completed the spell. 

A bright light blinded Maui for a moment before his world went black. 

 

Saveasi'uleo sniffed in disdain. "Some challenge that was." He disappeared, taking all of the damage caused from their fight with him. 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hohohohohoho, what do you think just happened?   
> Next chapter should be out soon (that is if I stop procrastinating)
> 
> Feedback is greatly appreciated!


	3. Finding out

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Moana finds Maui; but he's been cursed. Featuring: Moana the master of sarcasm.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter should clear up most of the confusion from the last chapter, so yeah.

Moana woke up the next morning to find Maui gone. Her first reaction was panic. After a few moments of heavy breathing, she decided it would be reasonable to go out and find him rather than stay inside and fret. She started by looking around the beach. The sands were empty and there were no traces of his footprints anywhere. After that she headed up the path and searched the village, where she ran into one of her friends, Mele. "Hey, Moana!" called the girl, waving her over. "Did you know the demigod Maui came here last night?" Moana nodded. Of course she knew; she was the one who asked him to stay in the first place. She remembered that she forgot to tell everyone about his arrival. "Well," Mele droned on. "Last night he appeared outta nowhere and asked us to get back to our  _fales_ because there were Night Marchers around."

"Really?" Moana quietly wondered if that's why he had left sometime in the night. "Do you know where he is?"

"No, but try checking the burial grounds, because I heard weird noises coming from there," said Mele. Moana thanked her and headed off. 

The burial grounds were silent. There was no sign of life anywhere. Moana checked around for a while, avoiding looking at the tombstones. After a while of searching she gave up and exited, giving a short prayer before leaving. 

"Well this has just been one giant fail," she muttered to herself, when suddenly she heard a rustling noise from behind her. She braced herself. Then a feathered ball blundered out, blinking up at her.

It was a bird. A baby bird. Upon closer inspection, she realised it was a hawk.  _And it looks familiar somehow_. Scratches and bruises were displayed across the hawk's body. Moana bent down to look at it. "Well hello there," she said.

"Hello to you too, princess," responded the hawk dryly. Moana blinked. Wait-

 

Did the bird just-

"Maui?" she questioned, gently picking up the injured hawk. 

Maui rolled his eyes. "I am deeply wounded by the fact that it took you an hour to recognise me," he muttered sarcastically. His voice was slightly higher pitched, and had a childlike effect. "I've been following you the whole morning, y'know." 

"Well, sorry, but as you noticed it's hard to spot a baby bird in the middle of a village. Jokes aside, what in the world happened to you?" asked Moana as she headed back to her  _fale._ "You look like you've just taken a beating. You didn't just fall out of a tree, did you?"

Maui gave a squawk of mock rage. "Of course not! Why in the  _world_ would I fall out of a tree?"

Moana tapped her chin, pretending to look thoughtful. "Well, there was this one time you were a monkey and you were swinging around in the palm trees until you fell out of a tree and broke your arm," she said slowly, her voice the very definition of innocent. 

"Gah! Just stop and get me some coconut oil," blustered the bird. Moana grinned at him and plopped him down on a tapa mat. Giving him some meat, she asked him to stay while she fetched some coconut oil. After a while, she returned, eating a banana.

"Let me finish my breakfast first before I clean your wounds," she said, sitting down beside him with a bowl of oil. Maui shrugged and ate a bit of the meat. After they both finished their meal, Moana set to work. She dipped her hand in the oil, sat Maui on her lap and gently spread the oil across his wounds, massaging them a little bit. Maui was content the whole time. After Moana was done, she set Maui down.

"You'd better not do anything reckless until your wounds are fully healed, okay? I'm going to wash my hands. I want a full explanation when I get back."

Maui rolled his eyes as Moana exited the  _fale_. She returned moments later and sat herself down beside him.

"So," he coughed. "You want a full explanation?"

"The whole thing. No making things up," replied the girl.

"Okay. So I visited yesterday partially because I wanted to see you again, and partially because I had a job to do," explained Maui. "You see, I was tasked with bringing the god of death to-"

"What?!" Moana's eyes were round as moons and filled with disbelief and worry. Before she could go mother hen mode, Maui held up both of his wings. 

"Yes. That's what I was tasked with."

"But-what kind of-who sent you? They must be as insane as you are then, to actually go near Saveasi'uleo."

"Yes, well, ironically it was Te Fiti who sent me."

That shut Moana up. 

"Now before you open your mouth again,  _let me explain._ Since Elo is the ruler of Pulotu, he can-ehm, how do I phrase this-control the spirits-no wait, that doesn't sound right...point is, Elo has authority over the spirits in Pulotu. And this dude has been sending his Night Marchers to Te Fiti. Also, no, the Night Marchers in question aren't from here. These Night Marchers come from his domain. They've been ravaging the poor woman's place, and she's just about done with his bullcrap, so she sent me to get him 'peacefully' or 'by force' if really necessary.  
I tracked Saveasi'uleo to Motunui; I'll admit, that was a bit of a surprise. I guess the guy made this place a getaway or somethin'. But I had to know the exact location of where he resided while at Motunui. And I realised yesterday night was the night of Kane, so I made a plan. I followed the Night Marchers to the burial site, because you forgot to mention that one bit in the last island tour you gave me. Because I knew the Night Marchers would come to their ruler. Also spotted a goddess in there, but she was just there to chant with them. So from there we fought and I think he cursed me in this form because I seem to remember being hit by some spell before I blacked out. The next thing I knew, I was a baby hawk and the rest is history. But let me tell you, I think Elo wants revenge on Te Fiti. They've had a history together and it all went downhill from there. So big possibility of a war between the gods happening here."

 

For a moment, silence filled the room as Moana gaped at the hawk, who stared at her nonchalantly. "That's-wow." Moana massaged her temples. "So let me get this straight-Te Fiti wanted you to drag this god's beat up ass back to her so she could 'negotiate' with him; which I am presuming was supposed to be a full on sass session because you saw how well Te Fiti handled you after we restored the heart by giving you _the look_ ; you tracked him here and he in turn beat you up and now you're a baby bird. And also the possibility of the aforementioned gods starting a war with each other."

"Yup," came the chirpy reply.

"And you can't change back?" asked Moana.

"Trust me, Curly, I've tried that and failed."

"Oh gods," Moana groaned. "So now I have to drag you back to Te Fiti to get directions to the Underworld and get an explanation, then I have to drag you to the Underworld and beg Elo for the curse to be lifted and 'negotiate' with him. Great."

"When you put it that way, you make it sound like it's a bad thing," remarked Maui.

"Because it is," hissed Moana. "What the heck am I going to tell Mom and Dad? 'Oh, hello guys, sorry, I gotta go on a suicide mission because my friend here got cursed and we have to stop this 'war' between Elo and Te Fiti before things escalate. I'll also probably die somewhere in this mission, but that's _fiiine_ , I can wait for you in the Underworld with Gramma while this prank war goes on and on until we all die.'"

"Pfft, no. Also, a prank war? Between the gods? _Really_?"

"I've been given the gift of sarcasm, I should use it to its full potential," came the reply.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I really tried to capture their personalities here, okay? Also Moana the mother hen seems possible; she's very empathetic. Also I hope you didn't find this chapter too confusing (I tried to lay down the plot as best as I could) (also I am somewhat new to writing and I haven't exactly developed the skill yet so bear with me)  
> Next chapter we get to Tui's and Sina's reactions and hopefully by chapter 5 they have set sail.  
> Feedback is greatly appreciated ^^
> 
> Extra note: I may rewrite this chapter later on if I find that this chapter is extremely confusing. Just tell me if it is and I'll change it to make it clearer.


	4. Parental Love

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Moana tells her parents that she needs to leave immediately. They get emotional. Angst.

Maui balanced uncertainly on Moana's shoulder as the girl made her way to the  _fale_   _tele_. His talons tried to keep their balance while trying not to accidentally scrape her shoulders. "Hey Mo," he cawed. "If my grip gets too painful, please tell me."

"Maui, I hardly doubt that your tiny little baby hawk feet are going to seriously harm me, so don't worry, I think I'll live," replied Moana.

"Well, gee, thanks. I'm surprised you managed to reassure me and mock me at the same time."

Moana rolled her eyes and continued on. As they approached, Moana's bravado wavered slightly. The last time she met up with her dad, it involved lots of yelling and Moana herself exiting without permission to leave. Maui noticed and nudged her slightly. She looked at his large brown eyes filled with confidence and pride and instantly felt better.

She looked inside to find her father. He was beside her mother. The both of them were quietly discussing something, and Moana didn't want to know what it was about.

"Um, dad? Can I talk to you for a minute?"

Tui looked up with a surprised expression, which softened slightly. "Moana. Come in."

Moana awkwardly shuffled towards her parents and sat down in front of them, Maui hidden from view by her hair and his feathers. "So um...I came here to talk about things. The first thing is that I probably shouldn't have done what I did yesterday. Sorry about that."

"Well...it's okay, but please don't do that again. It's very disrespectful and unbecoming of a Chief."

"Well, glad to know I'm forgiven," sighed Moana as a weight was lifted off her shoulders. Quite literally, actually. Maui thudded into her lap and made a long screech of protest. Tui and Sina stared blankly. "Oh, yeah, the other thing I wanted to talk about." Moana gently picked up the grumbling bird and set him down in front of her parents. "I found him outside my  _fale_. This is Maui."

"Did you name him Maui after your friend the demigod?" asked Sina skeptically. 

"You may not believe it, but this is actually  _Maui, Shapeshifter, Demigod of the Wind and Sea_ -"

"And Hero to All," corrected the hawk as he settled down. Tui and Sina exchanged looks of surprise and amusement.

"Well, I never thought I'd see the great Maui as a baby hawk," chuckled Tui after a long moment of silence. 

"Yes, yes, rub it in, why don't you," grumbled the bird.

"Anyway, Maui was cursed," explained Moana. "Also, the deity that cursed him  _may_ start a war with Te Fiti and everyone  _may_ die, and I have to leave as soon as possible to prevent another world catastrophe. So...permission to leave?"

It took her parents ten seconds to process what their daughter said. Then Tui pinched the bridge of his nose.

"Of all the people the Ocean could've picked...why Moana?" he muttered to himself. He looked his daughter in the eye. "Moana, you remember that talk we had yesterday? And how I arranged a marriage with an  _ali'i_ from another village? Well, how would your future husband feel if you were to die on this trip? What would your mother feel? What would Maui feel? What would  _I_ feel? If you go on this trip, which I know you will, one way or another, and you were to die, how do you think everyone who cares about you feel? I know you've beaten Te Ka before, but that was with Maui's help. And now, with Maui stuck as a baby bird, he is-sorry Maui-quite useless at the moment. Your chances of survival are slim here. And if I lost my only daughter..."

Tui was cut off as Moana flung her arms around her father, willing herself not to cry. "I promise I'll come back, Dad," she choked. "I promise you, mom, and the entire village that I'll come back."

Tui wrapped his arms around her and Sina joined in, tears welling in their eyes. Maui watched the family in silence, guilty that he couldn't be of any help. After a while, they broke apart, wiping their eyes.

"I'll prepare your supplies for the journey," said Sina, exiting the  _fale_. 

 

 

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry it's quite short. But I'm already working on the next chapter, so that's something.  
> Feedback is greatly appreciated ^^


	5. Setting Sail

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Moana and Maui are off to Te Fiti. They face a brutal storm on the way.

Later that afternoon, Moana said goodbye to her parents. 

"I'm gonna miss you guys," whispered Moana, breaking away from their hug. Maui was sat on the deck, expectantly watching them. 

"Get out there and save the world," said Tui, a bittersweet smile on his face.

"Don't forget, we're proud of you," called Sina as she watched Moana push the canoe out to sea. It was the same canoe that she and Maui had used to travel to Te Fiti. The red spiral of Te Fiti stood proudly against the white sail, shining in the sun.

Moana waved at them and watched as their waving figures disappeared over the horizon. Maui hopped over to her. "You okay, Curly?"

It took Moana a moment to realise the warm liquid running down her face. She wiped the tears away hastily and smiled at Maui. "Never better. Let's get going."

Maui gave her a look of mild concern and, after a moment's thought, shrugged.

Moana dangled her hand in the water, feeling the currents. The sail filled with wind, sending it speeding over the water.

After a while of sailing, the wind picked up, and Moana could smell rain. Maui noticed too, and sent her an uncertain look. Tying her hair into a bun, Moana picked the bird up and deposited him in the hold. 

"Mff," came Maui's protest.

"Sorry, Maui, but there's a storm coming," the boat rocked violently to punctuate Moana's sentence, "And you might fall overboard. So to stay safe, I'm putting you into the hold until we're through."

Maui glared at her before sighing and settling down with their supplies. Satisfied, Moana covered the hold and prepared, tying herself to a rope that connected her to the mast. Her heartbeat began to pick up as dark clouds blotted out the sun and the waves crashed and sent the boat rocking violently. Gritting her teeth as rain started pelting her, Moana struggled to keep the boat afloat and on course. The waves got higher by the minute, and Moana knew from experience that it was useless to ask the Ocean for help.

For the next hour or so, Moana battled the storm, almost getting knocked overboard several times, if it had not been for the rope tying her to the mast. Finally, the clouds began to clear and the rain turned into a drizzle. Then the storm was over.

Relief and exhaustion flooded through Moana as she collapsed to her knees. Her bun had been obliterated by the rain, causing wet locks of hair to fall in front of her face and obscuring her vision.

Taking a minute to catch her breath, she opened up the hold to find a pair of eyes staring at her expectantly. Reaching into it, she wrapped her hands around Maui's fluffy warm body and pulled him out.

"So you're still alive," he commented, looking around.

"We made it," she told the hawk jubilantly as she set him down. 

"Congrats Curly," he chuckled. He flopped to the floor and spread his wings and tail out to catch the sun. 

"For someone who's been dry and safe the whole time, I'm surprised to see you act like this," commented Moana dryly as she watched his antics.

Maui looked at her. "Well, it's cold and damp down in the hold, so I'm quite happy to get some warmth."

She rolled her eyes. "Okay then, let's find an island to rest on, because I feel tired."

Maui stood up, and, to Moana's surprise, half flew half climbed up the mast. He found a place to sit on and looked around, finding nothing but blue Ocean. He stayed there for a while, looking out for anything that resembled an island.

After a while, he finally spotted something. "LAND!" he screeched, looking down at Moana. She gave him a thumbs up and steered the canoe. As they neared, Maui was suddenly struck with a feeling of recognition. It was the island he had spent a thousand years on. But now it had trees and plants.

The canoe landed on the beach. Moana jumped out and pulled the canoe onto the sand and far away enough for it not to be dragged away by the water. Then eh clambered aboard, grabbed their supplies and hauled them into Maui's old cave. Maui swooped down and landed beside her.

Moana unrolled a couple of tapa mats and set them down on the sand for her bed, and built a makeshift nest for Maui. Then she ran outside, grabbed a few pieces of wood and started to make a fire. Maui watched her, hauling the tools for her.

The flames roared to life. Moana shot Maui a smile and began cooking the meat they had brought.

After they had dinner, Moana put out the flames, said good night to Maui and closed her eyes.  

 

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> You guys ready for the next chapter? It'll be coming out either sometime tonight or tomorrow.  
> Feedback is greatly appreciated ^^


	6. Crashing Waves

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sailing to Te Fiti takes a lot of time, and the two dorks waste it by bantering back and forth. Also Maui has a nightmare and Moana calms him down and a sea monster attacks them

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I feel very inspired today, heh. Get ready for some fluff (and some monster action)

_Maui found himself in an unfamiliar place, barely lit by the torches that decorated the cavern floor. He wandered around for a while, following the torches. He shivered, even thought the fire nearby made the cave very warm._

_Something didn't feel right._

_Maui turned a corner, and stopped still._

_He saw two figures standing in the dim light, their backs turned against him. One was tall and looked like a man, and the other was clearly a woman. They were talking in hushed voices in a somewhat familiar language._

_Maui knew some of the words, but the rest were lost to time. All of a sudden, the man lashed out at the woman. Maui could only watch in horror as they began fighting. The torches were blown out._

_Something sticky washed around his talons. With a cry, Maui lifted into the air, his small hawk wings fluttering furiously to keep him aloft._

_Blood._

_It was blood. Blood was around him, splattered into a gruesome puddle. Maui's wings gave out on him and with a screech he was plunged into the red liquid._

_"Eurgh!" He scrambled away, red staining his feathers and dripping down his feet. He felt something brush his side and he kicked out at it. He swore he could hear a cry of pain. Then his vision flickered._

_A voice called to him. Familiar and full of pain and terror. He barely heard it as his vision went black._

_"Maui!"_

* * *

"Maui!" 

Maui flew out of his nest with a startled cry, shaking out his feathers and eyes wide with terror. He looked around wildly to find himself in his cave, tapa mats surrounding him and the remains of last night's fire set in a pile in the corner. The sun was just beginning to rise. Then he saw Moana in the corner, gripping one hand and frowning at him with concern and pain.

His breath caught in his throat as he saw the small gashes torn across her left hand, blood flowing out slowly. That reminded him of his dream and he was once again filled with terror. 

He backed into a wall. Moana saw this and reached forward. He felt her warm hands close around his body as he was lifted off the cave floor and huddled close to Moana's chest. 

"You okay?" asked Moana, cuddling him to her. He could feel and hear her steady heartbeat, and he forced himself to calm down. He was okay, she was okay. Everything was fine. Well, almost everything.

"Um, y-yeah. What happened to your hand?" he asked, nudging said hand. Moana winced slightly.

"You happened. You were making quite the ruckus in your sleep. I tried to shake you to wake you up but you scratched me and I had to settle for screaming at you to get you to wake you up. Seriously, what happened?" Her brown eyes filled with worry. "Nightmare?" she asked gently. 

Slowly, Maui nodded. "Sorry about your hand though."

"It's okay, I can just put coconut oil on it and it'll be all better." 

Maui winced. His dream was slowly fading away, but it still shook him. It felt real. "Should we, uh, get going, or something?"

"In a while," said Moana, laying down again. "With all the ruckus you made, I barely got any sleep. Give me a couple more hours and we're good to go."

Maui waited for a few moments. Soon enough, he could hear Moana's breathing deepen. "Mo?" He nudged her. No response, she was out cold. Maui debated whether to sleep with her for a while, and soon after he closed his eyes as he fell asleep to the sound of Moana's heartbeat.

This time, no nightmares tormented him.

~~~

Five hours later, Moana pushed the canoe into the water and hopped on, steering the craft towards Te Fiti. Maui was perched on the mast, enjoying the view and the breeze ruffling his feathers.

They sailed through the day, well rested and well fed. After a while, Maui got bored.

"Hey Mo," he called from the perch.

"Yeah?" came the question.

"Would you remember me, for always?"

Moana was caught of guard for a moment. The oar came crashing onto the deck as she fumbled to pick it up. "Maui, why would you doubt that? Of course I would."

"Good. Knock knock."

"Seriously? Who's there?"

"I see you've already forgotten."

That took a while to sink in, and when it did, Moana couldn't help but burst out in laughter. Actual, full on laughter. After a while, Maui joined in, making amused bird noises. 

"That was clever," wheezed Moana after she got her breath back. "That was clever, you...you sneaky piece of shit."

"Tch, tch, such language you speak. It absolutely wounds me."

Moana gave him a half-hearted glare. She thrust her hand into the water, feeling the currents. Lalotai was up ahead. Moana shivered, remembering the first time she jumped in with Maui. It resulted in her nearly dying, with monsters trying to eat her at moment's notice.

And that giant shiny coconut crab. Ugh. She figured his song was somewhat catchy, though.

"Hey Moana," called Maui from his perch.

"What is it now?" asked Moana with a slight smirk, adjusting the sail a little to catch more wind.

"We should really go back down there to flip ol' Crabcake back over sometime, eh?"

Moana chuckled. "Maybe wait until we save the world  _again_ for that"

"Anyway, what do you think is Tamatoa's main flaw?"

"He's insecure?"

"No, silly. He's  _shellfish_!"

Moana burst into laughter again, and the boat went slightly of course. Still giggling, Moana adjusted their course. "Maui, I swear, you tell the worst jokes ever."

Maui gave a self-satisfied grin. "It's a gift."

~~~

Night fell soon enough and Maui was expecting Moana to fall asleep. To his surprise, the girl remained awake and alert, adjusting the boat if it went even a little bit off course. He suspected the Ocean was helping her, but no, it remained still as ever, only the gentle lapping of the waves indicating its movement.

After a while, though, Moana was slowly starting to get tired, yawning every now and then. But of course, she remained awake. The night progressed. Moana was starting to nod off. Her eyes bleary, she glanced at the mast. Maui was asleep on his perch, leaning against the wood. She was slightly concerned that he would fall off, but ultimately decided on leaving him up there.

After all, he was a hawk. That's what hawks do. They sleep in trees.

_(Except this one isn't actually hawk, he's a demigod, a human, an intelligent being, he has feelings and nightmares and dreams and he can get restless and)-_ Moana pushed that thought to the back of her mind as she absentmindedly glanced at her left hand.

The scratches had healed considerably, and she didn't think that would leave a scar. Shaking her head, she forced herself to remain awake.

And the night continued on.

~~~

If Moana wasn't so tired, she'd notice the giant being coming towards her. But she was tired, and she didn't notice. It wasn't until a giant fin smacked against the boat that she finally noticed. The canoe jerked violently and Moana jolted out of her comatose state. 

Maui gave a screech of shock as he flailed to keep himself standing on the mast. He looked down and noted the giant fin making circles around them. He concluded that staying in the hold would be the best option for him, and he felt extremely useless and guilty for not helping Moana.

He swooped down from the mast and crash-landed into the hold with a muffled groan. 

At the same time, Moana reached into the hold and groped around until she felt a long wooden pole. She hauled it out and got ready, resuming her battle stance with a warrior face on.

She gripped her spear hard, preparing for another attack. 

Then the  _taniwha_ leaped out of the water, its jaws wide open. Grunting, Moana maneuvered the canoe to avoid it. With a roar, it splashed back into the water. Moana decided fighting a creature that big would definitely kill her. She opened the sail fully, tacking into the wind. The canoe sped forward, in pursuit of the beast.

"It must be guarding Lalotai," Moana realised. She needed to get out of that territory. The  _taniwha_ was almost upon her, biting at the bubbles left behind by the speeding canoe. Moana kept her grip on the spear, ready for an attack. The beast zoomed past. Moana took the chance to jab her spear into its side, causing it to howl in pain. It disappeared under the water, a trail of blood following it. Moana hastily wiped the blood off and kept her canoe going.

A splash sounded behind her and waves pushed the canoe forward, signalling Moana that the beast had resurfaced and was once again pursuing her. She hesitantly glanced behind her to see the dorsal fin of the  _taniwha_ poking out.

Her heart hammering in her chest, she kept the canoe going forward. In the hold, Maui grunted as he was jerked this way and that. He was terrified, for not being there to help Moana and for getting killed somehow. In the beast bit the canoe, Maui and Moana would definitely die.

He had to trust Moana with this one.

The canoe shuddered as the  _taniwha_ poked its head onto the canoe, trying to snap Moana. Gritting her teeth, Moana let out a yell as she stabbed it in the eye. It howled in pain, but continued its assault. Moana was suddenly aware of what little energy she had left. She barely dodged a bite from its jaws. She forced herself to move as another bite came her way. She was too late. 

Searing pain exploded through Moana's body as needle like teeth dug into Moana's leg. Before the  _taniwha_ could pull over overboard, Moana jabbed her spear as hard as she could into the creature's nose. With a howl of pain, it let go. Fighting back a scream of pain and terror, Moana readjusted the boat and tacked into the wind again, the canoe speeding off as it left the monster behind.

They passed the barrier and therefore the creature wouldn't harm them anymore.

Moana fell onto the deck with a sobbing gasp of pain. The spear made a clattering noise as it landed beside her. Maui peeked out of the hold and instantly clambered out when he saw Moana. "Holy crap, that looks bad." 

Moana felt tears of pain run down her face. "A-at least the bone's not b-broken," she sobbed, reaching for a tapa mat to wrap it in. Maui hauled some coconut oil out with his beak. 

"I'll pour this over the wound. When we get to Te Fiti I'll ask her to heal you," he told her, voice filled with panic and worry.

She barely registered what he said before he dumped half of the oil onto her leg. She bit her lip as another scream threatened to escape. After a while, the pain turned into a dull throbbing. Maui was stroking the wound with his feathers in a futile attempt to make her feel better.

Overwhelmed with pain and bereft of energy, Moana lay back and closed her eyes.

 

 

 

 

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hehehe, take the angst  
> Also don't worry, she ain't gonna die. 
> 
> Taniwha-Sea monster, said to be guardians of specific places. While in water, it resembles a whale.


	7. Te Fiti

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> What the title said

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Get ready for Te Fiti's story

Maui was frantic. With Moana unconscious, the boat was slowly drifting off course, the wood splintered by the  _taniwha's_ attack. If they drifted too far and if Moana didn't wake up in time...

Maui shook himself and decided to try and steer the boat by himself. But first, he reached for a tapa mat and (with much difficulty) dragged it over Moana's comatose form. Then he grabbed a rope. Stomping on one end of the line, Maui weaved the rope into several knots. After he was done, he pulled on it and the rope tightened itself around her wrist. 

"Heh, useless, my ass," he grinned to himself. "The great Maui is useful in any form, even as a baby hawk."

Then without warning, the boat swiveled back on course, causing Maui to topple over in surprise. "What the-" He got up again and looked around. There was nothing in sight, apart from the Ocean.

Wait.

The  _Ocean._

"Well, looks like the wonder puddle finally decided to help," he muttered. "Took you about 3 years." He was met with a jet of water to the face. A blob of water rose up and shook its 'head' disapprovingly. Then it bent over Moana, tilting slightly that made it look concerned. "Yeah, don't worry, Curly's just taking a nap. Can't really blame her."

The blob looked at him again. If the Ocean had a face, Maui was sure he'd be getting the 'how-dare-you' face. The canoe moved along gently, the blob of water bending over Moana like a protective parent. Maui stayed beside her, resting in the crook of her neck.

After a couple of hours, a green dot came into existence over the horizon. Maui squinted against the sunlight to see Te Fiti get closer. With a burst of speed, the canoe flew over the waters, sea water spraying in Maui's eyes. The Ocean continued to push the vessel forward until it landed on the sandy beaches of the Mother Island.

The blob disappeared into the water as Maui hopped off. He sent an uncertain glance at the canoe, torn between searching for Te Fiti or staying on the canoe to guard Moana. He didn't have to decide.

The ground shook, and Maui had to flap his wings to remain steady. Slowly, Te Fiti emerged from the ground, her gentle green face looking down at them.

Maui bowed, bending his feet and flapping his wings into a similar action that humans did when they bowed. Te Fiti looked confused for a moment.

_Maui?_

"Yeah. Um...the mission to get Saveasi'uleo failed and I got cursed in the process. We really need your help."

 _We?_ Te Fiti shrunk her body to about the size of a large hill. She held out her hand and let Maui hop onto it.  _What happened?_

Maui cleared his throat. "Um, remember the girl that restored your heart?"

_Moana? Of course I do._

"Yeah, well, she wanted to bring me to Elo to reverse my curse and 'negotiate' with him like you wanted to do. On the way, we ran into a  _taniwha_ and um..." Maui gestured towards the tiny brown dot on the canoe.

Te Fiti's face changed into a look of concern. She gently lifted Moana off the canoe and let her rest in her palm.  _You want me to heal her, don't you?_

"Yeah. It's not a major wound; the bone's not broken; but I doubt she'd be able to face Saveasi'uleo with a bloody sore leg."

Te Fiti nodded once, and suddenly tiny vines sprouted out of her palm. The vines formed a cast over Moana's leg, and after a while, they disappeared, revealing the closed wound.  _She should wake up soon. I could feel that her energy level was low._

Maui awkwardly flapped over to Moana, his wings fluttering furiously to try and stay aloft. He crash-landed into Te Fiti's other palm and waited. 

~~~

Slowly, the colours blurred into focus. Moana groaned and looked around. She was immensely surprised to find herself in a palm of grass and flowers, and even more surprised to see Te Fiti holding her. 

"Te Fiti?" she mumbled groggily. The Mother Island nodded slightly. Then she felt a tuft of feather poking her cheek and she turned her head to the side. "Maui?" The hawk let out a relieved caw and nudged his head to her cheek. 

"How long have I been out?" she asked, forcing herself into a sitting position. 

Maui pretended to look thoughtful. "I dunno, maybe five-no, ten centuries."

Moana deadpanned. "I wasn't expecting sarcasm so fast."

Maui chuckled. "I'm joking. Not long, maybe a couple of hours."

Moana was struck with a memory. The  _taniwha,_ her leg-

"Wait-what-"

Maui gestured to Te Fiti's amused expression.  _Oh._

Moana kneeled and bowed. "Um," she began awkwardly. "Thank's for the help, Te Fiti."

Te Fiti pulled Moana close and shared a  _hongi_ with her. After a moment, they pulled away.  _You have questions to ask._

Moana was caught off guard by Te Fiti's voice. It was a melodious voice, like the call of a songbird. "Um, yeah. We need directions to Pulotu. And probably an explanation because that would be nice."

Te Fiti sighed.  _Yes, I was expecting the first question. That last one caught me off guard._ After a moment, the Mother Island set both Moana and Maui down. Moana reluctantly shifted her weight onto her previously injured leg, and let out a breath that she realised she had been holding when nothing happened. It was completely healed. 

_I will answer both questions. But first, I will explain how Elo and I got into this predicament._

_Me and Elo are siblings. We used to love each other very much. We would play together and help our parents look after the world. It went well, until I created the islands and gave life to them. The humans I created loved me and worshipped me. Soon the population began to grow and the islands were brimming with people. Saveasi'uleo thought that soon they would run out of space and he asked to be crowned ruler of Pulotu. Then he added death into the world, and some of the older humans perished. Their souls went to the Underworld, where Elo would take care of them for the rest of eternity. The people didn't want that. They shunned Elo for what he brought into the world and continued to praise me._

_That made Elo very sad and jealous. At first he would throw insults at me. Then his actions escalated from there, to the point of almost wiping out most of the human race just to spite me. I confronted him and from there we fought. Eventually I banished him to his realm, where he stayed there until Maui-sorry, Maui- stole my heart and I became Te Ka. He went free during that thousand-year period and wreaked havoc amongst the islands until you restored my heart. But I was not able to trap him this time, and he continued to ravage my island._

_I got tired of fighting after the whole Te Ka ordeal, so I asked Maui to bring him to me so we could work things out. But as you can see, that plan backfired._

Moana and Maui were staring in shock at the goddess. Te Fiti's expression was pained. 

"That's...I'm sorry," said Moana after a moment of silence. "Even though I've never had siblings, I know the pain of losing a loved one." Her eyes held a faraway look as she briefly glanced at the Ocean. She absentmindedly fingered her necklace.

Te Fiti sighed again.  _It's okay, young one. I'll give you directions to Pulotu. Head west. The entrance will be in the village of Falealupo, on the island of Savai'i. Find the farthest point of the peninsula, for Fafa. It is an outcropping of volcanic rocks. There sits the entrance to my brother's realm._

Moana nodded. "I promise I'll try to change your brother's mind and break Maui's curse."

_I really hope so, Moana._

~~~

After saying goodbye to Te Fiti, Moana and Maui set sail again. Silence descended upon the both of them as the sun began to set. 

"Hey, Maui," asked Moana after a while. 

"Hmm?"

"How did we end up at Te Fiti in the first place? I mean, I was out cold and you definitely couldn't sail in that form, so what happened?"

Maui chuckled. "Your old friend the wonder puddle decided to help. After 3 years." A jet of water squirted him in the face and he glared half-heartedly at the vast expanse of water.

Moana giggled and reached her hand into the water, where she could feel the water shiver affectionately. "Thanks, Ocean."

She stood up and measured the stars as they slowly came out.

"Let's get going." 

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know it's not in mythology, but solely for the plot of this book, Saveasi'uleo is Te Fiti's brother.  
> Extremely cliche backstory, I know.
> 
> Feedback is greatly appreciated ^^


	8. Sails to Falealupo

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Some moments from Moana and Maui's journey to Falealupo. Warning: Shit tons of banter

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Heya everyone ^^
> 
> Sorry for not updating yesterday, I was kinda busy and I had no ideas for this chapter until now.
> 
> Happy Valentines day!

Moana and Maui sailed towards the distance, comfortable silence descending between the two of them. After a while, Maui got extremely bored, and he couldn't come up with any jokes, so he settled for trying to fly in his new form.

Emphasis on  _tried._

As Moana watched with an amused expression, Maui flapped his wings furiously and lifted slowly but surely off the deck. He managed to fly a good 1 meter up the mast before his wings gave out and he plummeted towards the deck with a high pitched screech.

Moana was there to catch him. 

The second time he tried, they were on an island, resting. Moana was sound asleep nearby, her still form wrapped in a comfortable looking tapa mat and her head resting on a rock as a makeshift pillow. Maui, not keen on waking her up just to be there for moral support, snuck outside to try. He perched on top of the cave they were in and lifted off. The air was filled with the sound of wingbeats as Maui managed a short flight before he plummeted down into a bush. He crept back to the cave to find Moana awake and glaring at him. 

"Are you stupid?" she hissed, beckoning for him to settle down beside her. He reluctantly obliged, nestling himself in the crook of her neck. "What if there were monsters out there? Or something potentially dangerous? What if something happened to you and I wasn't there to prevent it?"

"I'm not a child, Curly," he muttered, gently grabbing a lock of Moana's hair to cover himself with as a blanket. She could feel her huff in amusement.

"Psh, please, you're practically a demigod man-child. And now you're literally a hawk child." Then she looked at him, eyes sparking. "So now you'll have to call me..."

"Moana, don't you dare-"

"MOMana."

Maui half groaned and half screeched as he ducked his head while Moana threw back her head and laughed at her own stupid little pun. 

"And you say  _I'm_ the one telling bad jokes," he grumbled. 

Moana giggled and ruffled his head feathers. "Let's just go to sleep."

 

~~~

 

"Hey, Mo," called Maui from the mast. 

"What is it, child?" giggled Moana from below him. If looks could kill, she'd have been obliterated from existence from Maui's glare. 

"As I was saying," Maui said in annoyance. "Who's the dude your dad asked you to marry?"

The apple in Moana's hand was pulverised instantly as Maui drawled out the words. Tense silence descended for a few moments as the both of them shifted uncomfortably.

The silence was broken by Moana's long-suffering sigh. "Maui, I literally found out the day you came to visit AKA the day Saveasi'uleo cursed you. So, I have no idea who the guy is or might be."

"...oh."

Moana looked at the now-unfortunately crushed apple in her palm. She sighed again, placed the apple back in the hold and washed off its juice. "Please don't bring this subject up."

"Duly noted," commented Maui as he eyed the poor apple with a shiver.

 

~~~

 

For the rest of the day, Moana and Maui bantered back and forth, Maui trying to fly again and again.

"Come on, Maui, I'm sure it's not so hard," cheered Moana as Maui lifted off for the umpteenth time. He was getting better at taking off and landing, but staying in the air and hovering were some things he hadn't mastered.

With a screech, Maui fell from the sky, again, and made a crash landing straight into Moana. The girl yelped as she was bowled over, almost landing in the water. The Ocean reached up to push her back on board, and she nodded gratefully at it before plucking Maui from her head and raising an eyebrow at his sheepish face.

"Really? You have a decent sized place to land on and you choose to land right  _on top of me_?" 

Maui flapped his wings uselessly and gave a little  _cree_ noise of apology. Moana sighed and set the ruffled bird back down. "Suppose I can't argue with that much cuteness."

"I'm not cute," said Maui.

"The way you said that made you even more cute," commented Moana with a smirk.

"I'm NOT cute!" he screeched.

"Okay, okay, fine." Moana's eyes lit up. "You're  _adorable_."

Nothing within a 5 meter radius could be heard except for the frustrated  _SCREAAAWW_ of a hawk.

 

~~~

 

"Are we there yet," grumbled Maui, leaning into Moana's arm as she steered the canoe. 

"What was my answer for the hundred other times you asked?" asked Moana with a raised eyebrow.

Maui sighed. "No."

"And what do you think my answer will be this time, smart ass?"

"No."

"Exactly. Be patient."

 

~~~

 

Maui was not patient. Every five minutes or so, he would ask the same question over and over again until Moana threatened to throw him off the boat, much like he did when they first met 3 years ago.

That shut Maui up for at least half an hour. Then the 30 minutes of bliss for Moana was cut short when he started whining again.

"Be. Patient, Maui," she hissed. "What was my answer for the other times you asked me?"

"No. So we're not there yet."

Moana checked the currents, and smirked. "Actually, we're here already." 

Maui let out an excited screech as he clambered up the mast to get a better view.

An island came into view, getting closer by the minute.

"We're here," breathed Moana. "Savai'i."

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> He c k this was so fun to write xD  
> Also, the sentence where Moana 'pulverised' the apple, I think she's strong enough to do that. I mean, heck, she dragged Maui's hook off the crab's shell when she was 16, so who's to say he strength hasn't grown since then?  
> Feedback is greatly appreciated ^^


	9. Pulotu

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Moana and Maui find Falealupo and the entrance to Pulotu

"So, we're looking for a village called 'Falealupo', and we're going to ask them where to find this entrance to Pulotu," recapped Maui as he and Moana trudged along the sandy beaches of the peninsula.

"Yup," replied the young woman, gripping onto her spear and carrying a bag of supplies from their canoe, which they had docked far away from the waves. Savai'i island was slightly bigger than Motunui, and it was incredibly beautiful. White sand sparkled in the sun as the clear aquamarine waves lapped gently on the shore. Inland, a wide array of exotic flora decorated the island. The fauna were wild and free, and Moana could pick out a few  _pe'a_ flying through the trees.  _Atafa_ rested along the sandy beaches, their black and red plumage shining in the bright sun.

Maui eyed the spear she carried, and something caught his eye. A heart and fishhook signature.  _His_ signature. But he only signed her oar, so why-

"Mo, care to explain this?" he asked, nudging the signature with his beak.

"Yeah, this spear used to be my oar," replied Moana. 

"What-"

"Mhm. I customised it into a spear myself. Since I'm going to be Chief soon, I doubt I'll be able to explore the Ocean as much, so I decided to turn my oar into something that I would see and use often," she explained, touching the signature on it fondly. "Also I decided to keep your signature. You're welcome."

"Well, thanks," replied Maui in surprise. "So the oar we used to get here wasn't yours? Cause I saw a similar signature on it, but more..." he struggled to find the right words. "More Moana-ish and less Maui-ish."

Moana laughed. "I carved that signature myself, which is why instead of a fishhook, it's a shell. But you can sign it if you want."

Maui hummed in acknowledgement. 

~~~

"Um, Mo?" asked Maui, dread pooling in his stomach. 

"Yeah?" came the answer and the sound of footsteps accompanied it as Moana burst into the clearing, out of breath and sweaty. Her heart plummeted as she gazed at the ex-village. The village of Falealupo was in absolute ruins,  _fales_ broken and rubble dotting the ground. The grass was a sickly greyish-green, and many animal remains lay in a pile, the rotting stench making Moana queasy. "Holy-"

Slowly, Maui and Moana made their way through the village, inspecting the damage. "What could have done this?" asked Maui.

Moana shook her head and looked at the pile of animal remains. To her horror, she found a couple of human skulls in the pile. The pile of bones was easily the creepiest thing she had ever since. Her feet moved against her will as she approached to take a closer look.

The smell hit her full force and she choked and stumbled back. 

"You okay? You look pale," asked a concerned Maui as he hopped closer to her, covering his beak with his wing. It would've been a funny and cute sight for Moana if the smell and the bones weren't currently draining the colour from her skin.

"Ex-excuse me." Moana ran towards a bush and threw up into it. 

"You okay?" repeated Maui, rubbing her arm with his feathers. 

"Let's get away from this place," she choked, wiping away the remaining vomit from her mouth as she stood up. 

~~~

Moana and Maui were huddled up in a cave far away from the ruins of Falealupo. Moana was still in shock over what they had seen earlier. She was rocking back and forth, wrapped in a tapa and Maui was doing his best to calm her down.

"It's okay Mo, just forget about it," he soothed, nuzzling her cheek. His talons gently but firmly grasped the tapa mat around her shoulders. 

"But who or what did that to the poor souls who lived there?" she asked, leaning against the cave wall. She stopped rocking, but her heart was still racing as she pictured the village and the pile of bones in her mind. That alone was enough to make her queasy again.

"Don't think about it," scolded Maui. 

"It's hard not to think about," said Moana, looking at Maui.

"Then think that we can bring it back. It must be Saveasi'uleo who caused this, this close to his kingdom. Either him or his  _aitu_. Anyway, we'll stop him and bring the village back." Determination sparked in his eyes and transferred to Moana as her own determination burned.

"Okay. Thank's Maui." She caught his mocking glance and when he opened his beak she shut it with a pinching motion."If you dare say those words I will smite you."

~~~

The next day, the both of them set out for the entrance to Pulotu. Maui spotted the volcanic outcropping of rocks and crash landed beside Moana to report. 

"If we go now, we should reach there by noon," he said.

"Thanks Maui. Let's get going."

They walked for a couple of hours, only stopping to collect freshwater from one of the (thankfully) preserved lakes. After filling up their waterskin, Moana grabbed a tired Maui and set him on her shoulder.

They continued until the entrance came into sight.

~~~

"Okay, so how are we going to do this?" asked Maui as they neared.

"I was thinking-" Moana was cut off when a strong wind brought forward the rotting stench of death. She gagged and reached for a cloth to cover her nose and mouth with. After tying the cloth around them, she hugged Maui close and covered his beak with her palm. "As I was saying," she said, her voice muffled by the cloth. "I was thinking we go in and do it. If there are guards though..." She twirled her spear. She caught Maui's grin and grinned back.

"Let's do this."

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Pe'a- Flying fox/bat  
> Atafa= Frigate bird
> 
> Feedback is greatly appreciated ^^


	10. In the Realm of the Dead

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> small family reunion between mo and her gramma

The first thing Moana noticed when she opened her eyes was that everything was incredibly dark. She worried for a moment she may have gotten blind, somehow, when she saw Maui lying a couple of feet away, lying on his side. Then her eyes adjusted to the darkness and she could make out their supplies scattered around them, her spear lying beside her. Scrambling to her feet, she collected their supplies into the bag she brought. After that, she bent down beside the unconscious hawk and gently shook him. 

"Maui."

Maui groaned and rolled over, only for his talon to smack into a rock. That woke him up. His eyes flew open as he leaped to his feet. He managed a short screech before Moana placed a hand over his beak. "Shh," she shushed. "We're in Pulotu, and we have to be as quiet as possible."

Maui eyed the small scratch on his talon but nodded anyway. Moana gently grabbed his foot, and Maui spread his wings to stay balanced as Moana rubbed coconut oil onto it. 

"Let's go."

Moana peeked out of the cave they had landed in. It seemed the portal to Pulotu would deposit any visitors into random places, since the actual entrance was all away across the cavern. After determining that there were no  _aitu_ around, Moana and Maui made their way slowly out.

They were greeted by a large cavernous world, where  _aitu_ floated here and there, going about their lives (ironically they were all dead).

"Was expecting more of a cave look but okay, I guess," commented Maui, looking at the clouds that hovered below the cave ceiling. It looked almost like the overworld, but darker. "Reminds me of Lalotai."

"Except instead of giant shiny singing coconut crabs and monsters who try to eat you at a moment's notice, it's filled with dead people and the god of death himself," snarked Moana. "We need a disguise."

Maui pointed to the bits of sand gathered around their feet. "We could press sand onto our skin. I bet that'd make us look dead and ghostly."

"'We'?" asked Moana with a smirk. "No, me. I doubt there'd be any animals down here. You will hide in my bag until we get this over with, okay?"

Maui let out a groan. "I hate hiding in things, especially stuffy and smelly things. Have you even washed that thing?"

"Yes, several times actually. It's just you trying to beg me not to put you in there, which I will give you the choice to be attacked by  _aitu_ or stay safe inside there."

Maui mulled it over for a few moments before he gave up and grudgingly allowed himself to be placed carefully in the bag, nestled in a bunch of tapa mats and the waterskin in the corner.

Moana placed the pack down and started rolling around in the sand until she was covered from head to toe in it. She added oil to her disguise to make it look glossy like all the other  _ainu_. Then she grabbed the bag and started walking towards the  _fale tele_ , where Moana was sure Saveasi'uleo would be.

Even with her disguise on, Moana didn't feel confident enough to walk through an entire village of ghosts, so she snuck around as quietly as possible. She was halfway through when a voice called out, "HEY!"

She started to panic, her instincts screaming at her to run, but she forced herself to stay still. Running away from a fellow  _ainu_ would make her look suspicious. She forced herself to turn around and meet the  _ainu,_ when she stopped. "No way. Seriously?"

"Moana! Been a long time," smiled the elderly woman, looking at her. Gramma Tala was the same as ever, the wings of a majestic manta ray displayed on her back. She frowned. "Though I think that you may have been too young to die."

Moana was puzzled for a moment, then realised why. "What- oh, no, no. I didn't die. It's a disguise." Moana rubbed off a little bit of sand to show her brown skin, warm and healthy.

Her grandmother visibly sighed in relief.  "Oh thank Tangaroa for that." Then her eyes twinkled mischievously. "Then what are you doing down here?"

"Well you see..." Moana began telling her grandmother all that transpired, from Maui's curse to Falealupo. Gramma Tala listened, eyes wide.

After Moana finished telling her story, Gramma Tala cackled and slapped her hand onto Moana's shoulder. "That's my girl, saving the world as usual."

Moana smiled. "Don't s'pose I could see the demigod?" asked her gramma.

Moana opened her bag and carried a disgruntled Maui out. She presented him to her grandmother, who chuckled in amusement. "Well, well, well, the great demigod Maui as a baby bird. And he's being saved by my granddaughter, again. Must be a habit for you both."

Moana blushed slightly from embarrassment. She was thankful for the sand covering her face. Maui gave Tala a half-lidded look. He was placed back into the bag soon after.

"I really got to go now," said Moana. "I've got a world to save."

Gramma Tala pulled her in for a hongi before waving them off.

~~~

"So that was your grandmother," came Maui's muffled voice from the bag as Moana hid behind a rock to rest. "She's a nutjob."

"She was the village crazy lady," said Moana with a bittersweet smile. "It was her job."

"So where are we now?" asked Maui.

"We're almost there. The  _fale tele_ is quite far from the entrance," replied Moana. 

"Then let's get going."

~~~

The  _fale tele_ was completely empty. Moana stood in the centre of the room, unsure of what to do to get Saveasi'uleo to appear. 

"Well? Is he there?" came Maui's voice.

"No-there's nothing here," replied Moana. 

"Wait-what?!" 

Moana's shoulders nearly got yanked off as Maui burst out of the bag and landed a few inches away. "Where did that slimy son of a-"

"Language, Maui," hissed Moana, rubbing her shoulders and moving them in a circular motion just to make sure they worked. 

"Whatever. Where is he?"

"I'm right here, you insolent fool."

Moana and Maui looked up, both in terror and awe as Saveasi'uleo rose up and regarded them with a cold stare. 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Aitu-ghosts who reside in Pulotu 
> 
> Feedback is greatly appreciated ^^


	11. Divine Rage

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Maui, demigod of the wind and sea, annoyance to gods

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Get ready for some incredibly shitty villian material :D

Moana bowed before the god, urging Maui to do the same. The bird reluctantly obliged. Moana could see a small satisfied smirk appear on Saveasi'uleo's lips as he gazed at her. 

He was divine, in a dark way. His top half was human and the bottom half was eel, his shining silver scales reflecting the light coming in from the outside. He was wearing a traditional red  _lavalava_ with delicate black patterns, depicting his status as ruler of Pulotu and a god.

"Lord Saveasi'uleo," began Moana. "I am-"

"No, don't you mortals know respect? Let me greet you first, then you can talk," said the god, cutting her off and putting up a finger. Moana shifted awkwardly.

"My apologies."

She shared a hongi with Saveasi'uleo. 

"Lord Saveasi'uleo," said Moana after breaking away. "I am Moana of Motunui. Me and the demigod Maui have come to ask you to reverse his curse and make up with Te Fiti."

Elo, who was smiling warmly at her before, suddenly scowled. He hadn't noticed Maui up until that very moment, when his name dropped from the girl's lips.

"Demigod? Have you seen him? Because all I seem to see is a puny bird," he said, tone even, yet Moana could see annoyance in his eyes. 

Maui made a noise that could only be called a bird version of a growl and marched over towards the god. Moana held out a hand to stop him, glaring.

"Elo, from what he told me, it was you who cursed him," she said, this time looking at the god. 

"Yes, I did. That was to stop him from annoying me," sniffed the god, nonplussed and looking absolutely bored out of his mind. "Didn't he tell you what he was tasked to do?"

"Yes, he did," said Moana slowly. If she slipped up on her words, she'd definitely have a vengeful god after her. "But it was you who continued to annoy Te Fiti up until the point of her sending him to do her bidding." She paused. "Wait that sounded really bad."

Saveasi'uleo was glaring at  _her_ now. "Yes it did. But you do not know what caused that to happen."

"You got jealous of Te Fiti and started to pick on her," Maui piped up, glaring at the god. If things weren't so tense, Moana was sure that the two of them would have a full on staring contest.

Elo hissed and slithered around them. "I was having fun pranking her until you showed up to annoy me."

_That's irony for you_ , Moana thought.  _I literally said it was going to be a prank war._

" _Pranking_? No, Te Fiti said you were  _ravaging_ her island. And from what I've seen, on the far side of Te Fiti, there are many dead plants and animals in the area. You mean to tell me that was a prank?" challenged Maui.

"So what if it were a few plants and animals? She should be grateful it wasn't  _humans_ ," said Elo. "And you clearly don't know how siblings work."

_Yup, he's lost it_ , thought Moana.

Maui glanced at her.  _She's the only family I have._ "I do," said Maui. "I have one. I used to have three, but they are long gone by now. But I have another one now."

"Yeah? And who might that be, tell me," sneered the god, leaning close. 

"The human who's standing in front of you now," said the bird. "Moana."

Moana found herself smiling fondly at Maui.  _He's my brother._

"And I know for a fact that killing off your sibling's favourite things is not pranking," finished Maui, his eyes cold. 

Saveasi'uleo slithered towards one of the poles and unrolled a tapa mat, blocking off the light and causing the  _fale_ to be covered in darkness.

"You say this human is your sibling," he said softly. "But in no way are you both related."

"I consider her my sibling because we care for each other and we get each other," replied Maui evenly. 

"Humans," said Elo with a bitter laugh. "They are unpredictable. They're selfish. She'll probably throw you away once she finds someone else more worthy."

Moana felt anger boil withing her, but she kept herself calm. Maui's bravado wavered slightly, but he remained defiant. 

"They want everything," continued the god. "Even when it's clearly too much or not enough, they want it. When I saw their population increasing rapidly, I knew that they would run out of space soon. And so I brought death into the world. I took away the most fragile ones, ones that would not survive in this cruel world. They should be grateful that I gave them more space and a peaceful afterlife. But they hated it," he spat. "They hated me for the gifts I brought them. Yet they loved my sister for bringing life and only life to them. Nothing more. They don't care if the balance would be affected by it, they just  _want_ it."

The god's eyes bore into Moana's. "Like you want your grandmother back."

"I..." Moana swallowed. "I do want her back. But I know that she has a better life here, peaceful and without suffering."

His eyes widened slightly in surprise. "What did I say," he said to Maui. "They're unpredictable." He looked at Moana again. "But tell me," he said. "Would you trade his life," Elo pointed at Maui, "for your grandmother's?" 

Moana found herself unable to speak. She hated choices like these. The both of them mattered equally to her. But her grandmother had already accepted her death, and she was happy right where she was. Moreover, she knew her grandmother would be disappointed if she chose her over Maui.

"That's incredibly mean of you," hissed Maui. "It's no wonder Tilafaiga and Te Fiti dislike you so much."

The very mention of his family was the last straw for Saveasi'uleo.

He roared and charged at Maui. 

Maui would've been dead meat if Moana hadn't swiftly plucked him up and ran for the exit, which was in a cave behind Saveasi'uleo's  _fale_. 

The god was behind them, throwing projectile after projectile at them. 

"Maui," hissed Moana. "Did you have to do that? Now we have an angry god on our heels. And that was the last thing I wanted from this trip."

Elo was catching up. He was holding a blade in his arm, and with a growl he swung it towards Maui.

The sound of skin being cut open echoed in the cavern as Moana turned around at the last minute to protect Maui from the blade. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know Saveasi'uleo sounds ridiculous, but there's a reason for why he acts like that. 
> 
> Anyway, hoo boy, three chapters in one day and leaving off this one in a very painful cliffhanger 
> 
> Don't worry I'll update tomorrow.
> 
> Feedback is greatly appreciated ^^


	12. Crimson

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Angstangstangstangst-

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Get ready for angst

Pain that Moana had never known before flared viciously as Saveasi'uleo's blade sliced through her back and waist. Maui's screeching wasn't helping either. 

Another noise reached her ears and she quickly realised her body had triggered the 'scream loudly in pain' switch. Then her brain took control and she scrambled ahead, blood dripping behind her and forming a red trail on the ground. She could hear Elo's furious screams ringing in her ears as he gave chase again. 

As she rounded a corner, she leaned up against a wall to catch her breath. Her vision was starting to blur slightly and a loud ringing in her ears was giving her a headache. The only upside to this was that the god had luckily missed her spine. Then the rocks she was leaning on crumbled and Moana screamed again as she and Maui tumbled down into a narrow tunnel, the light getting shut off as boulders covered the entrance. 

Then everything went black.

~~~

Maui groaned as the world blinked back into existence. Everything hurt. Slowly, his vision became more focused. He got to his feet and checked to see if anything was hurt seriously. With a satisfied smirk, he concluded that it was only minor scrapes and bruises and very sore muscles.

Then his heart plummeted as everything came flooding back. Panic quickly overtook him as he looked around for Moana. A quiet whimper came from somewhere to the left. He darted around a rock to find Moana curled up, tears streaming down her face and blood gathering at the corners of her mouth. A small spark of hope fluttered in his chest. She was still  _alive_. Then Moana coughed, and crimson liquid splattered onto the floor. His hope dwindled. She was alive, but probably not for long, not in this condition.

"Mo," he quietly said, sidling up to her. "How are you feeling?"

"Like someone chopped me up and strung me back together again through some unholy ritual," she wheezed. 

"I had a feeling that was supposed to be a funny joke, but right now it's complete irony," Maui deadpanned. His expression morphed into concern. "And why are you hacking up blood? He didn't hit your internal organs, did he?"

Moana took a shaky breath and winced as sharp pain shot through her lungs. "He didn't. But I think I fractured one of my ribs during the fall."

Maui's heart plummeted again. "You didn't rapture any of your innards, did you?"

"Trust me, I would be dead if I had," she replied shakily. Maui hopped around to look at her back, and felt ready to throw up almost instantly. Blood was running down Moana's back like a river, flesh sticking out at all angles and bits of white showing through. Maui identified the white as her spine, and that thought alone was enough to make the bile rise in his throat.

"I think we have some supplies down here," he said, leaving Moana for a moment to look for the bag that she carried. He only heard her wheeze in reply. He found the bag lying on the ground a few feet away. It was ripped in some places and herbal oils leaked out but he didn't care. He grabbed one of the bottles that was still miraculously untouched and dragged it across the floor to his friend, the thing making a scraping sound as it clattered over the rocks. He winced as Moana eyed the bottle with slight fear and pain. 

"This is probably gonna hurt," was her only warning before Maui tilted the bottle and poured everything over her. Moana was positively sure that her lungs had shattered as she let out an ear-piercing scream that resulted in her chest hurting even more than it already was, tears flowing faster down her eyes and blood dripping down her chin. Then it was like she couldn't breathe at all. With pure determination she forced herself to suck in a breath and winced as even more pain shot through her miraculously intact lungs. 

"Son of a bitch," she gasped out as she laid her head on the floor. 

"I would normally ask you to mind your language, but now I can just say let it all out."

Moana glared at him. 

~~~

"Maui."

Maui turned around to see Moana's eyelids drooping. "I'm tired."

Maui debated on what to do, and eventually he settled down beside Moana, his feathers fluffed out. He leaned against her chest. This way he could feel the air rattling through her lungs as she breathed and feel the shaky rise and fall of her chest. Gradually, her pained wheezing deepened and Maui knew she was asleep. He didn't want to sleep, in case she somehow...faded away in the night. 

So he stayed awake, listening to his friend's wheezing and the sound of his own heartbeat.

~~~

Moana wasn't waking up. The only thing that prevented him from full on raging was the fact that she was still breathing. He was desperate. He almost lost her twice, once 3 years back, when she decided to take on Te Ka by herself, and the other one on this trip to a  _taniwha_. He wasn't going to lose her here.

He checked her wound, angrily muttering to himself  _why did she have to fracture an incredibly important bone that he couldn't check_. He gasped at the sight of her back wound. Even with the water he had thrown all over her, the wound was slowly getting worse. It was infected, he realised. The smell alone was enough to confirm it.

Now he really didn't want to leave her side, but he had no other choice. She needed immediate help, and she definitely wasn't going to get it if he stayed down there with her.

With a heavy heart, he scrambled up the tunnel they had fell down the day before. As he neared the exit, he realised there was another problem. The exit was sealed by rocks. He had to push them away/break them to get out. He braced himself for impact and ran at the boulder full speed. Then he burst out on the other side, slightly stunned. He though he still had his demigod strength, that could've been useful in  _so many situations,_ then concluded it was probably the momentum and how loose these rocks were piled on top of each other. Shaking his body, he glanced back at the hole he had created. If any  _aitu_ or-Tangaroa forbid- Saveasi'uleo saw it, Moana would definitely be in trouble.

He gathered up his strength and started to push the rocks together until the entrance was completely sealed. To remember where it was, Maui reached down to paste a bit of mud onto the loosest boulder he could find. It looked insignificant enough that anyone would probably brush off at first glance. Satisfied, Maui glanced around the cavern.

With a shiver, he noted dry blood-Moana's blood- forming a trail to the outside. He looked down and realised he was standing in a puddle of it;  _just like his dream_. He realised it probably wasn't a dream at all, but a vision.

Shivering, Maui hastily stepped away from the dry liquid and followed the trail. Light blinded him momentarily, then his eyes adjusted to the light.

He found an eel waiting at the edge of the cave and startled. The eel slithered closer, glaring maliciously at him. 

"Maui," hissed Saveasi'uleo. "Where'd your little mortal friend go? I don't see her or her spirit anywhere in this realm, so she's probably ran for the hills and left you here."

Maui snarled; or did a bird version of a snarl. "Because of you, she's gravely injured, you  _bastard_."

The eel rose up to its full height, silver scales reflecting the light coming from the cave ceiling of Pulotu, and hissed again. "My, my, such uncouth language you speak. Let's finish this, shall we?"

The eel lunged at Maui, who rolled out of the way. Elo snapped his jaws at the spot where he'd been a moment before, and reared back, whipping his head to glare at the bird. Maui, in turn, charged at him, lifting off and landing on the eel, talons digging into the god's skin. Saveasi'uleo let out a long hiss of pain, coiled up and rolled around, throwing Maui off. Maui landed in front of him, slightly thankful for the times he and Moana had pushed him to try flying until he got the hang of it.

He lifted off again, before Elo got the chance to recollect himself, and swooped down, biting and scratching at the eel.  With a roar, the god transformed and flung Maui into one of the boulders. Maui scrambled to his feet, wavering slightly. He knew there was no way he could be able to face him now, not in this form.

He needed help.

So he prayed, to all the gods he knew that were friendly and helpful.

The eel god closed in on him, ready to strike with his blade; the same blade that wounded his friend, when the ground shook.

The both of them paused and gaped at the form of a familiar goddess, glaring at them with the full force of Te Ka's fireballs.

Te Fiti had arrived. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hehehe I hope you liked this chapter. We're going to end this soon, maybe a couple more chapters left. Though I'll probably make this a series. This will be the major story and the rest will be oneshots of the verse I created.  
> Oh boi, Te Fiti is here. Wonder how this will go down.
> 
> Feedback is greatly appreciated ^^


	13. Battle of the gods

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> :D

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Note: Te Fiti now has speech bubbles instead of italics because she speaks in front of divine beings. For humans she uses her mind to talk. That's my headcanon for her anyway.

"Brother," greeted Te Fiti coldly. Maui stared. It wasn't like the goddess to be so cold.

But maybe Saveasi'uleo had pissed her beyond her limit. 

"Sister," greeted Saveasi'uleo with just as much hatred. The two siblings glared at each other for a moment. Maui slowly inched away. If Elo and Te Fiti decided to fight here, getting away as fast as possible would be the wisest decision.

"You have done much damage," noted Te Fiti, eyeing Maui with sympathy. "And from the prayers Maui sent me, I heard that you hurt the Ocean's Chosen One as well." 

Saveasi'uleo spat onto the ground. "That girl? The Ocean's Chosen? Really?"

"If you have forgotten, brother, her name literally means 'Ocean'. And she restored my Heart, a great feat for such a small mortal," replied the goddess. 

"I wished she hadn't," retorted her brother. "I was having so much fun without you around. Then she had to ruin it."

Te Fiti actually  _snarled_. "If you haven't noticed, the world was slowly getting destroyed because my Heart was stolen."

"By the demigod that prayed to you before, nonetheless," noted Saveasi'uleo. 

"He has already relented for his actions and I forgive him," said Te Fiti without missing a beat. "He helped said Chosen One to bring it back to me." She eyed her brother with narrowed eyes. Elo shifted.

"Stop looking at me like that," he snapped.

"I see the darkness caused by my darker side has corrupted you as well," said Te Fiti, looking at him dead in the eye. Maui's breath hitched. He forgotten that powerful gods and goddesses could scan souls for good and evil.

"What?" chuckled Elo bitterly. "No, I'm not corrupted. I was perfected." 

Te Fiti eyed him. "You have succumbed to your own jealousy and my darkness that it pains me to see you like this." She let out a breath. "I will heal you, if you let me do it willingly."

Elo cocked his head. "Let me think about it," he said, pretending to be thoughtful, tapping his chin with a finger. Then his eyes gleamed. "Nope." He lunged at the goddess.

~~~

Maui could only watch helplessly as Te Fiti dodged to the side. Elo's blade sliced through thin air, rusted and covered in blood from the day before. He turned back to Te Fiti, snarling. The goddess responded by summoning vines to wrap around him. They managed to wrap around his torso before he transformed, wriggling out of their grasp in his eel form and slithering with lightning speed towards Te Fiti.

He opened his mouth and prepared to bite her. Te Fiti watched his movements and at the last minute disappeared into the grass. The eel hissed, shaking his head wildly to look around for his sister when a large palm tree sprouted in front of him and knocked him away. Maui almost laughed at the irony, that he had brought the first coconut trees into the world by killing an eel, of all things. 

Elo let out a cry as he landed several feet away. Then he slithered towards Te Fiti, only to find a green coloured animal with long silky fur. 

"So you finally show your animal form," sneered the eel. "How very ungraceful. A bear, of all animals."

The bear snarled. "I only use this form if very necessary."

Maui gaped at Te Fiti. He didn't know she had an animal form. Most gods and goddesses usually did, only being used for convenience of the situation they were in.

But he'd never seen Te Fiti's one.

The bear charged and pinned the eel down with its paw. He wriggled and flailed uselessly, hissing and spitting uselessly. The bear turned back into human, gripping the eel firmly in her hand.

Saveasi'uleo also transformed, to Te Fiti's chagrin. He landed on top of her, and wrapped his tail around her. Te Fiti summoned thorny vines and whacked him with it, drawing blood. Elo screamed and let go, glaring daggers at her.

The two gods were holding back to prevent damaging the place, Maui realised. He was wondering if he was about to witness an epic fight before the whole thing started, but quickly realised not. Then Te Fiti wrapped her thorns around Elo, trapping him. Elo tried to turn eel, to no avail. Even his eel form was unable to evade the thorns digging into him. 

Te Fiti approached him quietly, holding out her Heart. Saveasi'uleo inched away from it, glaring.

"This ends now, brother," announced the goddess before placing the Heart on his chest.

~~~

_Te Fiti's essence travelled through the dark shadows of her brother's mind. She found him shackled to a wall, taunted by two shadows. One she identified as Jealousy, and the other one she realised was her own darkness. She charged, forcing her essence into the dark being. Te Ka's miniature form screamed and tried to fight back, but was ultimately obliterated._

_One chain fell away from Saveasi'uleo's right hand. The other remained. He had to fight off the other shadow himself._

_"Brother, can you hear me?"_

_Elo looked up and his eyes widened in surprise. "Sister." Jealousy hissed and covered him, causing him to cough. Te Fiti shouted through the shadow. "Fight back, Saveasi'uleo!"_

_Elo looked at her, pained. "Don't listen to her," whispered the shadow. " She'll always get more praise and you'll always be hated, so why bother?"_

_"Don't listen to it," growled Te Fiti. "You know I can't control how others think of me. The same goes for you, brother. But listen. You were consumed by your own jealousy because you didn't get what you deserved. But I can try to fix that, and I'm sorry I didn't try before. Please, brother, I care for you a lot. I will do this just for you, just fight back!"_

_His sister's pleas reached him, and Jealousy screeched in rage as it felt its grip on him slowly slipping. "She's lying," it hissed. "She'll only tell of how you cursed the demigod and killed the Ocean's Chosen."_

_"You're right," said Elo softly, Jealousy taking over again. "Why would anyone believe anything good I've done?"_

_"You know I won't do that," said Te Fiti. "You know me better than this evil being."_

_"Even if I did, why would anyone believe anything good I've done?" Elo shot back._

_"You've never really opened up to the world. Now because of your actions, everyone knows you cursed the demigod Maui, who brought the humans anything they could ask for. In their eyes, Maui is a hero because they knew he cared for them, and he wanted their affection. He certainly didn't spend his misery on moping, hoping someone would notice him eventually. He made it happen, and he got what he wanted, through his friendship with Moana. You should prove that you care about them too. Show them that you care, brother. And you know me well enough to know that I care about you, Elo. Even if no one else will, I'll always be there for you. Because I love you, brother."_

_Elo's eyes widened at the words. Jealousy screeched again and tried to regain control, but this time it didn't work. With a wail, the dark being was banished to the dark part of his mind, where he would rarely ever visit in his lifetime. The last shackle broke, and Saveasi'uleo threw himself at his sister, the both of them sobbing in joy._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know its quite short but I promise I'll update soon.
> 
> Feedback is greatly appreciated ^^


	14. Aftermath

Maui shielded his eyes as bright light erupted from the Heart as it touched Saveasi'uleo's chest. For a few moments, the area pulsated with powerful magic, and Maui was sure that if he opened his mouth-er, beak, he could taste the  _mana_.

Then the light faded, and Maui saw Saveasi'uleo gasp and blink at Te Fiti. The both of them stared at each other for a while, the vines unwrapping Elo's body and sinking gently into the ground. Then Elo's face crumpled and he flung himself at his sister, who returned the hug with a similiar expression.

The two divine beings stood there, wrapped around each other, neither refusing to let go. Maui couldn't believe it. He was witnessing two godly siblings show human affection, and  _crying_. Actual tears leaked from their eyes (and Maui will forever wonder  _how Te Fiti's tears worked since she seemed to be made mostly out of grass and flowers_.)

Then after a while, Saveasi'uleo let out a sorrowful, "I'm sorry." His voice broke halfway and caused Te Fiti to hug him closer.

"I forgive you," she mumbled. 

After a few more moments of  _ungodly affection_ , according to Maui, they finally broke apart, smiling brightly. Maui noted the ruler of Pulotu looked much healthier and...gentler than before. 

They exchanged a few words before Te Fiti gestured to Maui with her head. Elo flushed slightly; very out of character, Maui thought; and waved his hand. Maui let out a gasp of surprise as his form largened. His feathers grew and his wingspan was lengthened. He was an adult hawk now, but he wondered if the curse was really lifted.

Taking a deep breath, he willed himself to become human...and promptly turned into a sharkhead. Maui groaned as the two gods smiled at him with amusement. This was so much like the time Moana saved him from Tamatoa.

Wait.

 _Moana_.

With a grunt, Maui turned into his demigod form. His hook thudded on the ground beside him. He let out a happy "CHEEEE HOOOOO!!!" and flexed his  _human_ muscles, happy to be back. His happiness was short lived though. His friend was more important.

"Ehm," he began. "Thanks for, uh, bringing me back."

"Yeah, uh," Saveasi'uleo scratched his neck awkwardly. "Sorry about everything."

"S'okay," replied the demigod, bowing respectfully. Then he stood up and looked at Te Fiti. "But uh, I need your help. I kind of have an emergency to attend. It's about Moana-"

"Isn't that the mortal I hit with my blade yesterday?" asked Elo, scratching his neck awkwardly again. "Because I was wondering what happened to her."

"You cut open her back and she broke a rib while escaping," replied Maui. He noted the look on the god's face when he said that and quickly added "I've already forgiven you so she probably would as well."

"Doesn't help because of the fact that I was the one who injured her so severely," muttered Elo, shaking his head. He shot a look at his sister. "Do you have enough left to heal her?"

"What do you mean "enough left"?" inquired Maui.

Te Fiti sighed. "Whenever I use my Heart, I use up a lot of my  _mana_. It takes time to recharge, which is why I sleep so often. And after what I pulled off with Saveasi'uleo, I'm feeling quite drained, to be honest. But I think I can manage."

"I seriously thought you were just being lazy," teased Elo, earning a glare from Te Fiti.

The goddess turned back to face Maui. "Bring her here."

~~~

Maui moved the boulders with ease. They were literally as light as a feather now that he had his strength back. He looked at the now-tight tunnel, debating on whether to change into something that would make it more convenient for him to move in it. Deciding against it, Maui forced his way down the tunnel. The stone scraping against his skin didn't hinder him.

When he reached Moana, he didn't know if she was alive or not. But he didn't see her spirit anywhere in the Underworld, so he was unsure. He bent down and very gently lifted Moana up, careful not to injure her further.

He held her close to his chest, and his hopes soared when he realised she was still alive. Her breathing, though ragged and painful, could be heard and he could see the rise and fall of her chest.

He was halfway out of the tunnel when he heard a faint voice call,"Maui?" He looked down to find a pair of brown eyes blinking up at him, slightly unfocused.

"Mo, oh gods, you're-"

Moana coughed. "It takes more than this to kill me. Sorry, I drifted off for a while."

"How are you feeling?" he asked.

"You mean besides feeling like I just got set on fire? Just fine, thank you very much."

Maui let out a bitter laugh. "We've got no time for jokes, Mo. You need help."

"What did you say when you injured your arm?" Moana wheezed. "Laugh off the pain."

"'Laugh off the pain' my ass. You can't even laugh without wincing," retorted the demigod as he emerged from the other side of the tunnel.

Moana was silent. Maui looked down. "Mo?"

He sighed as he realised she had drifted off again. Blood was staining his hands, but he didn't care. He emerged from the cave and faced Saveasi'uleo and Te Fiti. Elo winced at the sight, and Te Fiti shot Maui a look of sympathy.

Without a word, Te Fiti placed her Heart on Moana's chest, right where her own heart should be. A green glow enveloped her body, and both Maui and Saveasi'uleo watched in awe as the wounds inflicted on Moana's body closed up and disappeared. Te Fiti placed her Heart back in its place and looked at Maui.

"Wait," said Maui. "Why isn't she waking up?"

"Turns out I just had enough  _mana_ to only heal her injuries," explained Te Fiti. "She still needs time to fully recover. And she may have a scar or two."

"Oh." Maui wrapped his arms around Moana protectively. "Thank you."

Saveasi'uleo coughed to get their attention.

"I wanted to apologise to her personally, but right now it would be rude to jerk her awake just to say 'sorry'. So, um, please give this to her as an apology." The god handed Maui a piece of obsidian that looked like the Heart of Te Fiti. "It's a replica of my heart. If she wears this she'll have my blessing."

Maui didn't really trust the artefact, but it would be rude to refuse. After all, Maui had already stated he had forgiven the god. He grasped it and nodded his thanks to him. 

Te Fiti sighed. "I should get going. I'm going to need to recharge after this." She shot her brother a smile and pulled him in for a hug. "Goodbye brother. I hope we meet again soon." Then quietly, she added,"And please stop destroying my island because that part was not fun."

Elo laughed. 

Then with a wave, Te Fiti vanished into the ground.

~~~

"Think you could fix it?" asked Maui, standing in the shade of a palm tree with Moana, who was still sleeping. Saveasi'uleo rubbed his chin.

"I could call back the rot here and allow the spirits of the people who died safe entry into Pulotu," he said, looking at the remains of Falealupo. "But I think my sister is better suited for this job. We'll just have to wait until she fully recharges."

"Sure, then, do your thing," said Maui, hanging his hook over his back.

Saveasi'uleo spread his palms and instantly it was as if all the rot had been sucked down a whirlpool. It circled around the god, and vanished in an instant. He turned around and gave Maui a thumbs up.

The demigod still couldn't believe how quickly Elo's entire character had changed. One moment he was so keen on destroying everything and the next he was practically buddy-buddy. It was a good change though, reflected the demigod. He certainly could deal with less evil in this world.

Maui returned the gesture.

~~~

After saying goodbye to Saveasi'uleo, Maui prepared the canoe and set sail for Motunui. It wasn't until midday when Moana finally woke up. 

"Um...wha--" she mumbled groggily.

"Welcome back Curly," said Maui, feeling the currents. 

"Thanks-wait, what happened?" Moana pushed herself into a sitting position, suddenly aware that she was no longer in pain. Oh yeah, also the fact that  _Maui is no longer a baby bird and they were now literally heading back home_. 

"Well, let's see," said the demigod, pretending to count on his fingers. "While you were having fun in dream town, I battled Saveasi'uleo, watched a fight between Te Fiti and mentioned god, watched again as Te Fiti literally changed his heart, got Te Fiti to heal you, got Elo to restore me to my former self and restored Falealupo. Oh, yeah, said god gave you this." Maui produced a small obsidian oval that resembled Te Fiti's Heart, but it was engraved with depictions of the Underworld and an eel.

"Maui, you didn't steal another Heart, did you?"

Maui pretended to be offended. "I would never!" he gasped. "Did I forget to mention that Saveasi'uleo himself gave this to you? Also its not an actual Heart. It's a replica. And it carries his blessing on it, so you should probably put that in your necklace for safekeeping."

"Feels like our adventure 3 years ago, except-" Suddenly his ear was forcibly yanked down. Maui winced as Moana quite literally screamed into his ear," Maui, shapeshifter, Demigod of the Wind and Sea, hOW DARE YOU SAVE THE WORLD WITHOUT ME?!"

"OWWWW!! HEY! I DIDN'T SAVE THE WORLD ON MY OWN," he yelped. "THAT WAS TE FITI HERSELF! AND NO WAY WERE YOU IN ANY CONDITION TO FACE HIM!"

Moana tugged on his ear harder. Then she sighed and enveloped him in a hug. "Hmph. At least you're still alive."

"You're weird, y'know," mumbled Maui as he returned the hug. "One moment ready to murder someone, the next ready to give someone a hug."

Moana laughed and punched him. "You big lovable idiot." Then she looked him straight in the eye. "But please let me have some fun too."

"Only if you don't get hurt first, because that part was terrifying."

"No promises," said Moana, her eyes twinkling. "Because I'd do it all over again in a heartbeat just for you." 

"You know I'd do the same right?"

"We're basically family, Maui. Of course I know."

They sailed on, the Ocean excitedly pushing them along. 

 

 

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Mana-Spiritual energy
> 
> I think there's only the epilogue left, and we're done.  
> IMO, I probably need to rewrite this chapter ,because it makes me cringe and I probably was rushing this. But, that aside, Moana didn't die!! Yay!! XDDD
> 
> Feedback is greatly appreciated ^^


	15. Epilogue

"So what do you think?" wheezed Moana, showing Maui her back. Maui made a 'hmm' noise. 

"To be honest, it suits you," he shrugged. Moana punched him, and he took note of the recently added  _malu_ on her hand. It was in the shape of a cloud, stretching from her knuckles to the area just above her wrist. "Tell me why you decided to choose an osprey, of all the creatures you could come back as?" He looked at the  _malu_ on her back. Its great wings stretching across her back, an osprey stood proud and tall, flying above the swirls that Maui identified as the ocean. Two small manta rays graced her shoulders and along her arm, other swirls were added, stopping right above her lower arm. 

"So I could fly with you over the Ocean for the rest of eternity," she replied. "And it seemed like a pretty graceful and powerful bird. Not to mention I love its plumage."

Maui rolled his eyes. "Why, had enough of my hawk form?" He grinned.

"After that adventure, not really. You made a very cute hawk," she giggled as Maui pouted. "But I think the osprey suits me better."

"True," he conceded. He noticed a large brown line stretching from below her neck to her waist and winced. "Didn't it hurt getting the  _malu_ with that scar?"

"Maui, getting a tattoo always hurts," shrugged the young woman. Then she paused. "Though, I think it would've hurt less without the scar."

"And you're completely fine with it being so...exposed?"

"Maui," said Moana. "I am a warrior. This is my first battle scar, and I'm proud to wear it."

"That's my girl," smiled the demigod. "How's the 'Heart'?"

Moana unclasped her necklace, where the replica of Saveasi'uleo's Heart sat, reflecting light in the morning sun. "Same as ever. I really have to thank the guy. It's quite the cool gift."

"Wouldn't be a problem," said Maui. "I'm sure he's listening right now."

They stood in silence for a moment, admiring the sunrise, the Ocean lapping around at their feet.

"You know," said Moana, breaking the silence. "You're always welcome to stay here. Heck, I've been asking my dad to build a  _fale_ for you, whenever you visit. But if you want to-"

Maui pulled her into a hug. "I'm not going anywhere," he said. "Someone has to make sure you don't get yourself almost killed. I still have nightmares about it, y'know."

Moana deadpanned. "Maui, we just came back two days ago."

"Still. And someone has to make sure your future husband isn't a total asshole, so there's that." 

Moana giggled. "I'm really glad Te Fiti and Saveasi'uleo made up. Now maybe we can have more peace."

Maui chuckled. "It's never that easy, Curly. Still a buncha monsters roaming around out there."

"If you find any of them, please bring me along. I need a little excitement once in a while."

"What, having your back sliced open and breaking one of your ribs wasn't enough excitement for you?"

"I meant without getting injured, Maui."

"You could always climb one of those coconut trees and hike up your lovely mountains, if battling monsters is too much excitement for you."

"Sometimes I wonder how I put up with you."

"To be honest, I was wondering the same thing." 

The both of them laughed and lapsed into another moment of peaceful silence.

"Mo?"

"Yeah Maui?"

"Love you."

"Love you too." 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Malu-tattoos specifically for women. Usually only the Chief's daughter could get them. 
> 
> And we've come to a close. This was such a fast paced/short story, I'm sorry xD   
> But like I said, I'm gonna make a series of oneshots relevant to this 'verse. So there's that. Anyway, thanks for reading my very first story.
> 
> See you soon.
> 
> Feedback is greatly appreciated ^^


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